Rail Trail Ribbon-cutting in Hastings
GCC Friends,
I encourage GCC cyclists and especially ride group leaders to consider planning a ride on Saturday, April 6th with a remote start, beginning and ending in St. Johns County. There are now several trail heads that offer parking for rides of whatever distance you might like, but the main event will be the celebration of the completion of the new Hastings section of trail and the Hastings trail head!
Gainesville Cycling Club has a several-year history of supporting our neighbors to the east in Armstrong, Palatka, and St. Augustine in their effort to promote cycling, cycle tourism, and our wonderful local rail trails! Let’s keep the momentum going. Get together a GCC ride group, or carpool out with a few friends, or come by yourself and enjoy the ribbon cutting celebration when the new Hastings segment of the Palatka-St. Augustine Trail, and its brand-new trailhead, are officially opened! Click here for details of the events surrounding the long-awaited completion of one of the last remaining gaps of the rail trail that extends from Lake Butler to St. Augustine!
Celebrate Palatka’s designation as a Trail Town, and explore local eateries, B&Bs, and maybe participate in the Wine Stroll on Saturday night, after the celebratory bike ride on the trail and other festivities. Palatka’s new brewery, Azalea City Brewing Company, won’t quite be up and running yet, but I’ve been assured they will be opening next Fall. Great things are happening, and Palatka-area businesses are recognizing that cyclists bring dollars to their local economy! Let’s encourage that thinking.
Whether you can make it or not, please consider making a donation to the St. Johns River to the Sea Loop/ SEA Community Resource Center fundraiser. (You can register for the Bike Florida/VeloFest ribbon-cutting bike ride on Saturday morning, or simply opt to make a donation here. The SEA Community (Spuds/Elkton/Armstrong) has supported the rail trail, cycling, and cyclists, since the trail began. The SEA Community Resource Center can use our help.
I hope to see you in Palatka for the celebration, ribbon-cutting, and the celebratory bike ride on the new section of the trail in Hastings on April 6th!